THE ARCHAIC SKY

CHAPTER: THE YOUNG LIBRARIAN'S ROUTINE

Familiars

Sometimes on purpose, others on accident. You may be able to summon another being and form a bond, or some sort of a contract, with them to be master and familiar. Though, should the summoning go wrong, the effects could be disastrous.

The scent around her library had always been the smell of paper. The dust in the air that created beams of light through the windows as the sun walked out from behind the clouds. Though even the eternal sun had little effect on the unrelenting snow this winter. The cold air that she breathed in still and lifeless as she sat alone in her library. At least until the baker decided to stroll by on "accident" every moment he could just so he could drop off a pastry from Immerabendreich.

"good morning, ojou-chama" he would say every time he slid the door to her library open. His face was dusted with flour as his sleeves were pushed up ever so slightly so he could bring her a new pastry.

He would walk right through, not minding her customers and visitors all busy with their own research, his smile wide and sweet. Haru would avoid the Frey the "bothersome horned cat" that would sleep around on the counter, playing with a dangling tassel on her desk lamp and scratch anyone else who wasn't her. It wasn't easy to get him healed. She couldn't possibly just drag him around. So instead she had to read an entire corner of her library to help him herself. Which thankfully was just simple elixirs and a good rest.

Which was good for her seeing as she hated the feeling of having a scratchy throat that wouldn't disappear even after she drank an entire gallon of water.

Passing the seventh edition to the library rules, the other editions were stashed away under her desk as they did not particularly help, the seventh edition was not the newest but had removed all useless rules the other editions still held.

Besides, the seventh edition had one warning printed at the very first page. 'those who do not return their books at the promised time has signed away the right for the librarian to hunt them down' it was supposed to be a hollow warning. Nothing but a empty threat.

But for this library, that warning would become true, if Amara was in a particularly foul mood. Or if she wasn't lazy enough to not hunt them down.

after a bit of negotiation and some begging, she had acquired all the books in madam Hanami's collection. then of course with funds from the council she had set up a library as a ruse to gather information from traveling researchers and scholars as well as being a place to keep records and reports from the intelligence department. the previous library had fully become a dormitory for the older members and staff, effectively making her library the only library in higana as well as one of the largest in the nation. though that isn't saying much since there are only a handful.

still, it made her library busier than ever. so busy that she had to hire some workers of her own.

the best part however was the fact that she could add names to her list of titles. Shisho for librarian. Okami for landlady. travelers from zhongyuan even called her fangzhu and laobanniang. titles were a melodious chorus to her ears.

and not only hers.

"morning, Koushi" Amara would always reply as she shelved the books that was left unattended to. Though the smell of the pastries was tempting, the lounging area on the loft even more so, she knew she couldn't slack off, it wasn't like before in Mistress Hanami's library. She had people to tend to now that it's her library alone.

Outside she could see the seikatsu skirmishers doing their drills. She remembered when she was still a skirmisher. Still wearing blue before her uniform changed to yellow. Then red, the last colour before she could become a herald.